Prominent Melbourne businessman and Australian football identity Richard Pratt has died at the age of 74, after being diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2005.

Mr Pratt's impression on Australia's business world was unmistakable.

Under his management, cardboard company Visy Board went from a modest two-factory Melbourne operation to a global company with 110 sites in Australia, the United States, Papua New Guinea and New Zealand.

Late in life a cloud fell over his role with Visy when the company was fined $36 million for price fixing.

Mr Pratt was born in the Polish city of Gdansk in 1934 and came to Australia when his parents emigrated to the Victorian town of Shepparton in 1938.

They changed their name from Przecicki to Pratt upon arrival, and the family set about settling into their new Australian surrounds.

His father started the Visy family business, and was later educated at Grahamvale Primary School, Shepparton High and then University High School in Parkville, Melbourne.

A lifelong involvement with the Carlton Football Club was foreshadowed when he won the best and fairest award as an under-19 player with the Blues, and culminated in him being appointed president of the club in 2007.

He also tried his hand as an actor with an early interest in theatre at the University of Melbourne, which lead him to tour London and New York with a production of Summer of the Seventeenth Doll.

Visy grows

Despite his sporting and dramatic interests, Mr Pratt was drawn to the family business and after completing his studies at the University of Melbourne, he focused on working with Visy.

He took over the running of the company in 1969 when his father passed away, taking responsibility for a company with an annual turnover of $5 million and about 200 employees.

The company went through a period of significant expansion, with new plants opening up around Australia and even further growth when Mr Pratt entered the US market.

He also built the company into more than just a cardboard box manufacturer, with a successful entry into the waste management industry.

In the 2007-2008 financial year Visy generated more than $2.3 billion in revenue and employed over 5,600 people.

In November 2007 the Federal Court fined Visy $36 million over its involvement in a price fixing cartel.

Visy's former chief executive Harry Debney, who accepted responsibility for his part in the cartel, was fined $1.5 million.

Former general manager Rod Carroll, who also accepted responsibility for the cartel, was fined $500,000.

But Mr Pratt, as owner of Visy, escaped a personal fine.

In another case, Mr Pratt was accused of giving false or misleading evidence to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC).

Yesterday, federal prosecutors discontinued their case, saying it was not in the public interest because Mr Pratt was terminally ill.

Philanthropy

Despite his involvement in the price fixing scandal Mr Pratt was widely recognised as a generous philanthropist, starting the Pratt Foundation with his wife Jeanne in 1978.

The organisation donated over $13 million to charity in 2007 to 2008.

Mr Pratt was also a prominent member of Australia's Jewish community and helped to foster closer relations between Australia and Israel.

Continuing his involvement in education and the arts, Mr Pratt was installed as Swinburne University's foundation chancellor in 1993.

In 1985, he was awarded an Officer in the Order of Australia for services to industry, arts and sport.

In 1998, he received another gong, this time an AC or Companion of the Order for Australia. The citation mentions community service, business and employment, cultural life and philanthropy.

Finally in 2001, he received a Centenary Medal.

Mr Pratt also used his clout within the packaging industry to spearhead recycling initiatives, which was recognised by Clean Up Australia.

But the price fixing scandal took a toll on his public image, and in 2008 he returned his Order of Australia and stood down as chairman of the Carlton Football Club.

Final goodbyes

He is survived by Jeanne and their three children Anthony, Heloise and Fiona.

Mr Pratt also has another daughter Paula, born to Sydney socialite Shari-Lea Hitchcock.

The Pratt family home is the historic Kew residence of Raheen, which in recent days has seen a tide of family, friends and prominent Australians come to say their final goodbyes.